


Waking Up Is the Hardest

by TellOurStories



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Gen, Healing pods, Major Character Injury, Not graphic but to be safe, casetle ship magic, will i ever balance dialogue and action correctly?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-19
Updated: 2018-05-19
Packaged: 2019-05-08 20:49:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,369
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14702028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TellOurStories/pseuds/TellOurStories
Summary: It isn't an uncommon thing to wake up in the morning after a heavy battle, but this doesn't feel right. Nothing feels right anymore. Everyone is acting strange and Pidge can't seem to get the answers she wants...But what else is new?





	Waking Up Is the Hardest

**Author's Note:**

> This has been sitting in my "unpublished" file for a couple of months and I finally decided to let it out. Just a little concept I was playing with... Like... it's literally been there since before Season 5 was released if that helps give an idea of how old it is.

The moment Pidge felt herself drifting back into consciousness she clenched her eyes tighter to block out the light. The heat streaming in from her window fell on her face making it seemingly impossible to fully wake up and face everyone.

Except the fact that she wasn’t supposed to be feeling sunlight on her face, and her pillow wasn’t supposed to smell like home and she shouldn’t be able to make out the sounds of chatter coming from the kitchen downstairs.

Mostly because she had been in space for over a year now. Without sunlight or her own bed, or her family being near enough to be carrying on a conversation where she could hear.

Finally, she opened her eyes and allowed herself to sit up. Sure enough, she was back in her room on Earth and could definitely smell her mom cooking breakfast while her dad and brother were carrying on about the Garrison.

Something was different though. It all felt so artificial… Like another dream that her mind enjoyed making up to make the isolation to the Castle of Lions feel more like home. That’s all it was.

Nevertheless, she intended to make the most of it.

Her feet just hit the floor when Matt came through the door with a smile.

“Morning, little bird. Mom and dad are waiting for you.”

“Be down in a tic.” She replied, reaching for the glasses that would usually be on her bedside table. They weren’t there, nor were they balanced on the nose of her older brother.

This was weirder than usual. Her dreams often consisted of her family never going on the Kerberos mission or returning safely, or maybe even the rare occasion where it seems to be after they all return safely to Earth and get to live happily ever after.

But this… This was different… and it excited her.

Matt had left the room, giving her the privacy to change clothes and get ready for breakfast. She pulled on an old sweater and revealed in how well she could remember how home smelled, and how her favorite things felt on her skin. She’d never felt closer to home than she did now.

Once dressed and done obsessing over how her room looked again she made her way out into the hall. Strangely, Matt was standing next to the stairs, his face somber and watching her closely, as if he were taking in every detail of her face. It was only now she could make out the scar on his cheek, and bags under his eyes.

It looked like he hadn’t slept in days.

“They all really miss you, ya know.” He said softly, making eye contact with her.

Pidge froze.

“What-“

“Hunk keeps blaming himself for what happened to you…” Matt continued as if he hadn’t heard her, eyes falling to the floor. “He keeps hiding away and not even talking to anyone. Even Lance hasn’t talked much.”

“Matt, what are you talking about?”

A sad smile broke on her brother’s face.

“They all really care about you. Shiro and Allura keep trying to cheer them up but… it’s not working too well.”

“Matt!”

“I just wish I had been there.”

“Where?”

“Maybe then you wouldn’t be like this…”

Pidge blinked and stared at her brother again. None of this made sense. Usually, he was completely unaware of her dreams and carried on like it was a normal thing. Dream Matt never knew the difference between the real world.

But why is he being so ominous? What’s happened to make everyone so sad and distant?

“What happened to me?” Pidge asked out loud, watching in horror as her brother faded from sight, followed by the house around him. Soon she was left surrounded by yellow light that gently faded to blue. “Matt?” She panicked looking around.

Then… She woke up for the second time. Shooting up in her bed in the Castle of Lions where she was covered in a cold sweat. Taking a second to catch her breath she pulled her blanket to her chest and looked around. The room was messy as before, gadgets scattered around the floor and an Altean novel tossed to the side of her bed.

It was exactly how she remembered it, and it never felt so comforting to see that familiar mess until this moment right now.

After calming herself down and changing into her newer clothing so graciously provided by Allura she opened the door and looked out into the hallway. The Castle was still in its nighttime cycle, meaning everyone was still asleep and she had simply spooked herself awake in the middle of the night.

But maybe something to drink wouldn’t hurt, her throat was very dry.

The hallways echoed less than usual while she made her way to the kitchen. Or maybe she was just too exhausted to notice the difference, and at this point, either one would be correct.

Arriving in the kitchen it didn’t take long for the off feeling to continue in her gut. The usually clean and stocked area was messy and mostly empty. It almost seemed like Hunk and Coran both had abandoned the space for a few days and they had been eating Space Take-out. Which was odd because she could easily remember helping Hunk clean up the kitchen before she went to bed the night before.

Maybe someone had just been getting a snack and been too lazy to clean up. Probably Shiro. For a team leader, he wasn’t very tidy in the kitchen.

Reaching up to open the cabinet to get a drink, she heard the unmistakable sound of the bay doors opening on the level below her and a ship landing inside the castle. Who would be arriving when everyone else was asleep.

Pidge hesitated to move, but still decided to make her way down to the lower level to check out the situation. Maybe she had missed a message from Matt about him coming to help with a mission or something similar. He was the only one she knew of that could get that close without setting off the alarms or needed someone to open the doors for him.

Peeking around the corner, she could make out the silhouette of Allura standing there, arms crossed. The ship was one she didn’t quite recognize until its pilot stepped out wearing all back.

“You made it…” Allura said softly, her stance relaxing a little. “Shiro is on his way down. He was with the others.”

“I just can’t believe it.” The black-haired pilot muttered. “What happened? Why isn’t anything working?”

“It was an accident- Shiro! You’re here!” Allura stopped, seeing the taller male enter.

Shiro seemed to walk right passed Pidge without even knowing she was there. Pidge blinked and looked into the room again as Shiro looked over Keith and Allura.

“Welcome back, Keith,” Shiro said. “I wish the circumstances were better.”

“What are you guys gonna do? Without-“ Keith began but was caught off by Shiro.

“Right now we just want to focus on keeping our heads. Come on. They’ll be happy to see you.”

The three of them walked out of the bay and closed the doors without addressing the younger teen as they walked on. Their conversation was too quiet for Pidge to hear.

All she knew is something was happening, and they obviously wanted to keep it from part of the team.

Maybe it was her time to snoop.

Pidge followed behind them, trying to be as quiet as possible. Their mutters grew quieter as they neared the elevator and she decided to take the one that was down a separate hallway. Due to this, she lost track of them, finding the group again outside of the medical bay.

“And Matt’s here…” Allura said when Pidge finally came close enough to hear them again. “But he isn’t taking it too well.”

Pidge felt her entire face move. Why would Matt and Keith be here? Why doesn’t the rest of the team know that a mission was being planned? Did something go wrong?

She turned quickly when she heard heavy footsteps behind her, seeing Hunk walking towards the doors. He looked too pale to be awake at this hour, and his hair was lazily being held back by his headband.

 

“Hunk?” Pidge asked, turning fully to look at him. “Do you know what’s happening?”

Hunk continued walking passed her.

“Hey! I’m talking to you!”

Pidge followed after him.

“Hunk! Listen to me!” She yelled in one last attempt to get his attention. In a quick movement, she tried to grab his hand.

And missed.

Except she didn’t miss. Her hand passed right through his larger one.

“What?” Pidge ran after him and tried again, passing completely through the male every time she attempted to physically touch him.  “What’s going on?”

_They all really miss you, ya know._

“… No….”

Pidge quickly ran through the medical bay doors and found Lance and Matt sitting next to each other in silence. The doors opened to Hunk walking in with Shiro, Allura, and Keith behind him.

_Hunk keeps blaming himself for what happened to you… He keeps hiding away and not even talking to anyone. Even Lance hasn’t talked much._

Pidge was standing with her back to the healing pods, unsure of if she wanted to turn around or not. Her friends… her family all had their eyes on her. But even now she could tell they were looking right through her.

_They all really care about you. Shiro and Allura keep trying to cheer them up but… it’s not working too well._

“Guys. You’re scaring me…”

_I just wish I had been there…_

Pidge swallowed and turned around.

_Maybe then you wouldn’t be like this…_

She came face-to-face with exactly what she expected to see. Her own reflection.

No.

Her body, locked away in a metal case with Altean words flashing across a screen.

“No…” She muttered and looked closer. Her face was pale, scratches covered her skin, some of her hair had been singed. “What happened…?”

The memory flooded back to her, bringing the teen to her knees in front of her motionless body.

The mission… The refugees… The explosion.

In a feeble attempt to take back a planet from a violent Galra uprising, they had been forced from their lions to help citizens from their homes. She was on her way back to the green lion when fighters came in through the sky, blasting the ground and uprooting houses, setting the world around her on fire.

Her lion sensed her pain, Green tried to retrieve her, and Pidge didn’t even remember what happened. All she remembered was everything turning bright, and then it all went dark. She could barely even hear her teammates calling her name.

Pidge tried to control her breathing, coming back into what little reality she was holding onto when she heard speaking.

“Will she recover?” Keith asked sheepishly.

“Possibly… We saved Lance from a Galra bomb blowing up a crystal, I’m sure we can heal Pidge from some burn wounds and shrapnel.” Coran said from his spot near the pod.

“Pidge is smaller than me.” Lance pointed out. “She may be tough, but she was thrown a lot farther and hit the ground a lot harder than I did.”

“… What about her leg…?” Matt asked, staring at the pod again.

Pidge looked where his attention was, eyes widening.

Her left leg was uncovered by the suit, exposing skin that was beyond repair. She knew even then it probably couldn’t be saved.

“We’ll talk to her about options when she wakes up…” Shiro said, setting a hand on Matt’s shoulder.

The group sat in silence again, Pidge sat on the floor next to her pod, pulling her knees to her chest. Everyone looked through her, and at the same time, they looked at her. She felt so helpless.

“We should get some rest.” She heard Allura said finally.

“I’m not leaving her alone,” Hunk spoke up, rubbing his eyes. “I want to be here when she wakes up.”

“You can’t be here for her if you’re exhausted, big guy,” Lance said, patting his shoulder. “I’m sure we have time to rest. Right, Coran?”

“Most Definitely. There’s more than enough time to rest up and plan our next move.”

“I don’t want to move without Pidge.” Hunk said. “We don’t have a green lion pilot.”

“Maybe Matt can-“

“No! Green is Pidge’s lion. No one touches her but Pidge.”

Pidge looked up at the group. Hunk was standing, looking at their teammates. Her head perked up a little to listen.

“I don’t think Lion hopping in an answer right now. Voltron should stay put while we have a teammate down.” He said, voice cracking. Pidge could practically hear the tears on his face. That Team Punk bond was incredible. Hunk spoke again. “Let’s not consider options until we know she’ll be okay…”

“Thank you, Hunk…” She whispered with a sad smile, laying her head back down on her knees. She felt lighter than air as the room around her began to fade again into blue light, which soon turned to white light.

In a flash.

The white light went out, leaving her surrounded by darkness.

The third time Pidge woke up she felt a numb pain covering her body like she had been laying in the same position for a while. Logic would remind her that this is indeed the truth. Because this time, she awoke in her own body.

“I think she just moved.” She heard Lance’s voice say. “Can she come out now?”

“Hold on…” Allura said. “Maybe it would be safe to give her another day.”

“I can’t wait anymore! It’s been weeks.” Lance complained. “I miss Pidge sassing me and Hunk is still acting depressed.”

“I am not!”

Pidge heard their voices grow quieter as whirring sounds filled the air around her. Air pressure was released as she felt the pod lose its hold on her, making her fall into a set of large strong arms.

“Welcome back…” Hunk whispered, holding her bridal style.

Pidge opened her eyes and gave him a weak smile.

“Good to be back…”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly, someone teach me how to write properly. I have an idea to continue this but I am not 100% confident in this at all.


End file.
